As used herein, the term “beam DUT” refers to a series of beams configured to be included in a probe card, where the series of beams is of a number that corresponds to a respective series of conductive pads, areas or regions on a device to be tested or device under test (DUT) or the like.
In processes used to form probe cards, such as cantilever probe cards, thermal issues may arise due to the materials from which the probe cards are comprised. For example, the use of nickel manganese (NiMn) for probe elements in probe card fabrication may create thermal issues affecting alignment during attachment (such as by, for example, tab bonding using a wire bonder) of the probe beams to the corresponding posts on a substrate (e.g., a space transformer, a multi-layer organic (MLO) substrate, a multi-layer ceramic (MLC) substrate, a printed circuit board (PCB), etc.). Such alignment problems may result from the different coefficients of expansion (Cte) between the probe beam materials and the substrate materials which deleteriously affects accurate beam—post attachment/alignment and hence, formation of acceptable probe cards. Such issues may also exist when the beams are of a shape not utilizing a post (or other stand-off element), where the beams are bonded directly to the substrate pad (or conductive trace on the substrate).